Pretend for Real
by kali82
Summary: She was pretending, but now that it's for real it's you that has to pretend all the time.


Disclaimers - I do not own She's the Man, or its characters, I just like them a lot. also: first femslash and first angst, unbeta'd. you have been warned.

Notes: a Yuletide Madness treat for zoicite because I just couldn't resist the prompt.

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><p>It took Olivia about three weeks to realize that there was a reason Viola referred to Sebastian as her idiot brother. It wasn't a term of affection: he really was an idiot. Yes, he was charming, and a musician, and had lovely floppy-boy-hair, but deep down he was the idiot who had taken off to play with his band and stuck his sister with the cover-up. Viola had stepped up, taken care of her brother's mess and turned the situation to her advantage. Compared to her, Sebastian couldn't help but come across as an idiot.<p>

Olivia found herself spending less and less time with Sebastian and more time with his sister. Once Viola dropped her boy act, Olivia had thought everything would change. But it hadn't. It was just like being with pretend Sebastian, the boy she had an obvious massive but probably hopeless crush on, except that now he was a girl who had a boyfriend and no idea that her new best friend had a massive but probably hopeless crush on her.

Olivia watched with envy as Viola and Duke wandered through campus hand in hand. She listened with sympathy as Viola worried that she was too much of a tomboy for Duke. She held Viola's hand and hugged her close and acted like a supportive friend, all the while wishing that Duke would be hit in the head by a soccer ball and have to drop out of school. And then she felt guilty because Duke made Viola happy and she didn't actually want anyone to get hurt.

About a month after Olivia realized that she wanted to be dating the person behind the pretend Sebastian rather than the real one, the real one proved that he wasn't an idiot all the time.

"This isn't working, is it?" he asked one day as they were watching the soccer team practice. He had his guitar and was playing something, but Olivia was watching Viola run drills and noting that she was favouring her right leg. She was going to have to bring an ice pack and muscle rub to their study session - Vi was terrible at taking care of muscle pain.

"Uh, that sounded nice," she said, realizing that he had stopped playing and was looking at her expectantly. "Sorry, I'm a little distracted."

"No kidding," he grinned. "I just asked if this is working. I'm starting to think that you're not dating me, you're dating the imaginary me that my sister created. And I'm not him."

Olivia winced. She could try to deny it, but what was the point? He was right, and there wasn't really anything they could do about it.

"I thought so," Sebastian said finally. "Well, it's been fun. You're a lot nicer than most of the girls at this school, so I hope this doesn't mean you're gonna stop talking to me or something."

Olivia denied it, but she knew that she probably would. Sebastian was nice, but they never would have been friends if not for Viola's deception. They parted on good terms, and when Olivia told Viola she let her friend hug her close and felt happier than she ever had in Sebastian's arms.

A month after Sebastian and Olivia broke up, Viola and Duke had their first fight. Olivia sat on Vi's bed and handed her tissue and chocolate as she sobbed out the story of soccer field rivalry and wounded prides. Viola let Olivia wash her face and tuck her in, and when Olivia made to leave the room, she whispered "please stay?" so quietly that Olivia wondered at first if it was her own wishful thinking.

The next morning, Olivia woke to sunlight in her eyes and chestnut hair tickling her cheek. Viola had cuddled into her arms at some point in the night. Olivia lay still, breathing in the warm, earthy scent of her and memorizing the feeling. She lifted her arm from where it lay across Viola's waist, moving slowly so as not to wake her. With the lightest of touches, she traced the line of Viola's cheekbone, down her jaw, and stopped at her chin. When the other girl didn't stir, she raised her finger to trace Vi's lips.

A soft sigh brushed across her fingers. Olivia froze. Before she could pull her hand away, Viola's eyes blinked open and met hers.

"Mmmm... morning Livia."

Olivia bit her lip as Viola's eyes slipped shut again. Out of nowhere, she felt a wave of sadness. This must be how Vi had felt, watching Duke day in and day out. But Viola had got her happy ending. Olivia doubted she would be so lucky.


End file.
